Wednesday, May 6, 2009

This morning I went to a client's house to deliver a beautiful console table by a great source in North Carolina that actually still makes its furniture in the United States, in its own facility. Everything is hand-forged, hand-planed, hand-finished. Beautiful, beautiful work that's just not remotely in the same league as the stuff you see at mass retailers.

It's nice to splurge on a piece like this every now and then. It might not be apparent to anyone who walks in the door that it's handmade and expensive - after all, there's plenty of stuff out there that looks pretty good even though it's cheaply made - but that's not really the point, is it? I'm happy I found a piece for my client that will hold up and that has a gorgeous finish that goes deeper than the thin veneers we've grown so accustomed to seeing.

The table shown here isn't the table we delivered this morning, but it's by the same company. I chose this photo because it hints at the depth, beauty and richness of the source's hand-finishing process - as much as can be shown in a photo, at least. It's even better in person.

About Me

I'm a writer and residential interior designer, and I combine the two careers by writing about homes, design trends and lifestyle topics for newspapers and magazines. One of these days, I hope to add "published author" to the list of hats I wear.